Sweet Dragon President

I was a little touched for a moment.

What's with this sweet Dragon President?

I thought he just asked to get off work together to chat on the way because he was bored.

I find myself reflecting on my past self, who frowned at the thought of an uncomfortable commute home with a superior.

As I looked up at the red Dragon Helmet my eyes full of surprise and gratitude, he lifted his head high and gloated.

[Yeah. That's the exact look. That's the Tadashii (correct) attitude to have toward the President. Revere me a little more.]

“….”

With that single remark, the fleeting feeling of respect I had felt vanished as if washed away. At my cold gaze, the Dragon President cleared his throat and spoke.

[Anyway, which way are you going? Did you say your house was in Asian Town?]

“Yes. I take the Ground Bus from the Station over there.”

[If it's that way, Iceberg Station? You'll go straight from there and take the monorail from the platform in the middle.]

“Yes.”

[Good. I'm a busy person too, so I can't take you all the way home, but I'll walk you to the Station. The direction is roughly the same up to there. Then, Ikuyo (let's go).]

The Dragon President said that and started striding off to one side.

Like a true local, he knew which way to go without a navigation function and moved forward without hesitation.

However, following him, I stopped dead in my tracks halfway.

There was a reason I had no choice but to do so.

[What are you doing? Not following.]

“…I think that path might be a little difficult.”

[Nani o itteru no (What are you saying?). This is a shortcut.]

“Shortcuts are nice, but wouldn't it be good to take the slow route sometimes.”

The reason I was spouting such nonsense and refusing to go down that path was… obvious.

Right in the middle of the street stood artificial structures that made my footsteps halt.

[What is… Ah.]

The Dragon President also followed my gaze and looked, then let out an exclamation as if he understood.

Where I was looking, two vending machines stood tall, emitting an ominous light as if possessed by evil spirits.

Ken and Bobby.

The red and blue Rubber Vending Machine siblings.

That terrifying pressure, as if the Cheonhadajanggun and Jihadajanggun totem poles were standing side by side!

It was as if a barricade had been set up; I absolutely did not want to go down the passage those vending machines were firmly guarding.

If I happened to pass by and that devilish ego inside the vending machine woke up… just imagining it would be terrible.

Seeing me shudder, the Dragon President chuckled.

[I wondered what was wrong, but it seems you've already met them. They're somewhat of a local specialty in this Alley. Since you're a guy, you must have been victimized by Bobby. Right now is exactly the time Bobby is active, too.]

“Right now is the time that… the vending machine is active?”

That was truly the most terrible news I had heard today.

Seeing me freak out, he explained it even more kindly.

[Yeah. To save power, they alternate based on midnight; Ken is active during the day before that, and Bobby is active during the night after. At this hour, Ken would be sleeping and Bobby would be awake.]

It's not Jekyll and Hyde. What is that?

So when I pressed the cola button, was that why Ken reacted in horror, saying, 'Now that sleeping guy is going to wake up.'?

It was still the time when Bobby should have been sleeping, but because I pressed the button and woke Bobby up…

Thinking about it again filled me with immense regret. All because of that damn cola.

If the cola had been tasty, I wouldn't have felt so wronged, but of all things, it was a disgustingly tasteless Green Tea Cola.

[So, you didn't actually do it with Bobby, did you?]

The single remark the Dragon President casually threw out shattered my thoughts and pulled me back to reality.

Even if he is a Superior, there are things you should and shouldn't say.

I bit back the harsh words that almost slipped out.

“Are you crazy by any chance?”

Oops, even though I tried to hold it in.

Despite my rough reaction, the Dragon Helmet showed no sign of anger and only smirked.

[Why, even if you did, there's no need to be embarrassed. For men, Seieyoku (sexual desire) is an unavoidable physiological thing. I'm a generous President when it comes to that. I hear Bobby's skills are quite amazing. The way it wraps around you tightly with its beverage dispenser….]

“No! I haven't done it. And I won't do it in the future either.”

[Should you give up so quickly? Fortune favors the bold, and the bold win the Beautiful Person. Or do you have a girlfriend?]

“…….”

[Given that sour expression, you've never had one in your life. It's okay. It happens. You're still young, right? Bobby will probably like it even more. He said his type is an inexperienced, pure Otokonoko (boy).]

“Ah, please.”

The nightmare I experienced in the morning was coming back to life. My mind was about to grow dizzy again.

Seeing me suffer, the Dragon President laughed wickedly and said:

[Alright, I'll stop. There really is fun in teasing you. This is why it's so fun when a newcomer joins.]

“…Thank you.”

[But why do you hate it so much? For someone like Bobby, the color is pretty and the way of speaking is sexy. Are you perhaps a Machine Discriminator who doesn't see Evers as women or something? Or do you have bad memories of sex with a vending machine?]

“Didn't you say you were going to stop?”

[Oops, I did. My mistake. Because of curiosity. Pfft.]

“….”

Ignoring the Dragon President, who was completely enjoying teasing me, I walked at a fast pace down the path opposite the vending machines.

Then he suddenly popped out next to me with wide strides and opened his mouth again. This time, it wasn't a teasing tone but a serious one.

[So. You finished your first shift. What are your shokan (impressions) of the work?]

“Well… it was fine.”

[That answer is too cliché. Are you walking on eggshells because you're in front of your Superior? Weren't there any fun episodes or a Troublesome Customer you wanted to beat to death?]

“Yes. There weren't any.”

There was a Customer I wanted to punch once rather than beat to death, though.

At my dry answer, the Dragon President clicked his tongue as if bored and said.

[Well, the bartenders also said there were no major problems. It's a bit of a shame for some reason, but Soredemo (Nevertheless), I'm glad you seem to be adapting well so far. You can come to work at the exact same time tomorrow, right?]

“Yes, no problem.”

[Good. Today was just a taste, so don't let your guard down too much. Ah, and also.]

What was he hesitating to say?

Sasha Dragon casually spat it out while guiding me down a deep, winding alley.

[Do some Exercise. Download Self-Defense Data or buy a Fitness Machine. When I was massaging you earlier, how can a guy's body have such flimsy muscles? Your stance was all hunched over too.

This is why I have no choice but to walk you to the station out of anxiety. If you're going to keep commuting this way, at least prepare some minimal self-defense equipment.]

This is a little unfair.

I can humbly admit that I can't fight since it's true, but are my muscles flimsy?

It's true that I've neglected Exercise since falling into Dusk City, but that was unavoidable because I was busy.

Still, I trained to some extent by doing hard labor in the Kitchen, like carrying heavy ingredients, doing blade combat, and swinging frying pans and pots.

My body is just a bit skinny, that's all. I'm a practical, compressed-muscle type of person whose biceps bulge when I flex my arms.

When I said that, the Dragon President spoke with a dumbfounded expression, as if he had never heard such nonsense in his life.

[Sorega (That)? Practical, compressed? No matter how you look at it, it seems like it would be completely useless in actual combat. Even if we just had an arm-wrestling match among our store's members right now, you'd be guaranteed dead last, Nakamura-kun.]

“Dead last? Aren't you looking down on me too much?”

[Oh, you seem confident?]

My pride is hurt. Even though I look like this, I was someone who always maintained a top rank in my class during arm-wrestling competitions in my school days.

I might not know about anything else, but I'm confident I can avoid being dead last. Dead last, at least.

I was about to snap back, but I opened my mouth at a sudden thought.

“…If we arm-wrestle, you'll take off that Powered Suit, right?”

[Hmm? I'm going to do it without taking it off?]

“But that's unfair. You'd be borrowing the power of a machine.”

[It's fine since I walk around with the power half off anyway. For normal movements or exerting force, I mainly use my own bio-energy. Otherwise, I can't handle the costs. This Exosuit is a total money-eating hippo. Anyway, so whether I take it off or not, my Physical Strength itself is similar. If anything, I might be weaker because the gauntlets are heavy.]

So he's saying his strength is similar whether he takes the suit off or not….

Then that Iron Grip I felt when he massaged me was energy radiating from his natural body.

It seems that behind that red armor, he is full of solid muscles like an active volcano.

I suddenly felt my confidence in arm-wrestling plummet.

Come to think of it, there weren't many employees either.

Excluding the Dragon President, who seemed to be a Gym Rat, the remaining Candidates were Tony and Sey, the two Bartenders.

First of all, Tony… usually seemed to walk around sluggishly drooping, but whenever he was doing Bartender work, he mixed cocktails with his back straight, and his forearms and shoulders were quite thick.

He was a Brute, and on top of that, one of his arms was a prosthetic.

If I were to arm-wrestle Tony, I don't think it would be easy. If I filter him out for now and think about it….

Then that leaves Sey as the remaining person.

No matter how much I've neglected exercise lately, would I lose an arm-wrestling match against a woman? That was the first thought that came to mind.

Even though Dusk City is full of cyborgs and body mutants where you can't judge people just by their appearance, honestly, Sey wasn't someone who looked that strong based on her exterior alone. , even if she looked slender and flexible.

As if reading my thoughts, the Dragon President narrowed his yellow Mechanical Eye and said.

[If you're Masaka (No way) looking down on her because she's a woman and thinking you can at least beat Sey, you're going to regret it big time. You'd be better off trying to figure out how to beat Tony somehow.]

“…Never mind. We're not actually going to arm-wrestle anyway. I should concentrate on my work.”

At Dragon's warning, I awkwardly changed the subject.

It's absolutely not because I feel like I can't beat anyone that I'm tucking my tail and running away.

Upon my reaction, the Dragon Helmet touched its chin with a nasal 'Hmm….'

[Yeah, well. Today isn't the only day. Just don't forget! You said it with your own mouth that you wouldn't be dead last. A man shouldn't go back on his word.]

“That's….”

[I'll set up a venue for it soon. Look forward to it. Oh, we're already here. It's the Station.]

At those words, I suddenly snapped back to my senses and looked ahead, and it was true.

I could see the chrome shelter-type Station installed on the side of the road.

A Dusk transportation facility with a futuristic design, surrounded by glass and cobalt lights.

A transparent electronic display board rose to the side, blinking and displaying the estimated time until the next Guided Bus arrived.

The surroundings were also quite bright, unlike the dark Alley. Walking while talking about this and that, we had arrived here before I knew it.

As expected of a major Passage where the Ground Bus passes, at the Station, I could lessen my worries about dangers like Scavengers, Slum Robbers, or Blind Killers.

Because this vicinity was not only packed with surveillance cameras but also part of the DCPD Traffic Patrol Route.

No matter how bold a Criminal is, they don't openly commit crimes at the Station.

The Dragon President didn't offer to walk me to the Station for nothing.

[You've arrived safely. Then I'm going now. See you tomorrow.]

As soon as I sat on the cold plastic chair at the station, Sasha Dragon said that and coolly left.

After exchanging a light farewell greeting, he strode away and disappeared into the middle of the slum alley submerged in darkness. As if he had no fear, he navigated that complicated passage as easily as if it were his own home.

Anyway, he's amazing. He must be that confident because he's sure he can easily protect his own body.

With just that Iron Man-like Powered Suit, even if a dozen ordinary gangs attacked, they wouldn't be a match for him.

I stared at the spot where the Dragon had left for a long time, and when the Ground Bus arrived, I took it and went back.

I transferred to the monorail, got off at the Kabuki Building platform, took the Lower Levels elevator down, opened the door to my home, Condominium Unit 0973, and collapsed onto my bed.

The time was 5:56 AM on March 22, 2107 AD.

I had finally gotten off work and returned home.

Looking back on the day, I felt like I was suffocating.

It had been such a long day. So many things had happened.

It felt like my brain was protesting, begging me to stop torturing it and to let it sleep. My eyelids were heavy and my head was dull.

However, surprisingly, my body felt quite light. Despite the long hours of labor, my limbs felt refreshed.

Did the Dragon President's forceful massage actually have an effect?

I fell asleep with such silly thoughts. I was so exhausted that I lost consciousness, sleeping like the dead.

…In my dream that day, the Red Dragon Legion appeared, chasing me from behind.